BOSTON (AP) — As much as he wanted to keep playing in his return from a sore lower back, Rajon Rondo knew it was much more prudent to rest on the bench in the second half.

He had plenty of company as the Boston Celtics closed the regular season with an 87- 74 win over the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday night.

Rondo finished with 15 assists despite not playing the fourth quarter and Paul Pierce scored all 12 of his points in the first half, even though he missed most of it with a sprained toe.

The Celtics will open the playoffs Sunday at Atlanta, which clinched home-court advantage with a win over Dallas. Had the Hawks lost, they would instead be coming to Boston for the series opener.

With the Celtics’ fate largely in the hands of the Hawks, Boston used its returning starters sparingly after pulling ahead by as much as 21 in the first half. The only starter missing was Ray Allen, who has been out the last two weeks with a sore right ankle.

Kevin Garnett sat out the last two games to rest an injured hip flexor. He played 11:04 against the Bucks, all in the first half, and had four points, two rebounds and three assists. Mickael Pietrus returned after missing four games with a sore right knee and scored nine points.

Rondo had 12 assists in the first half, extending his streak to 24 games with at least 10 assists. It’s the longest streak in the NBA since John Stockton reached double-figure assists in 29 straight in 1992.

Boston’s Ryan Hollins tied his career high with four blocks and scored nine points for Boston, which went up 2-0 on Pierce’s layup 17 seconds in and never let go of the lead.

Hollins scored seven points as Boston opened the second period on a 13-2 run.